VW’s top US exec resigns amid scandal

VW’s top US exec resigns amid scandal

WASHINGTON

Volkswagen’s top U.S. executive is stepping down amid the company’s ongoing emissions cheating scandal, the company announced Wednesday.

U.S. President and CEO Michael Horn is leaving “to pursue other opportunities effective immediately,” the automaker said in a statement. He had been with the German automaker for 25 years, assuming his most- recent post in 2014.

Horn’s sudden departure comes as the company continues to grapple with the fallout from its admission last year that nearly 600,000 cars were sold in the U.S. with software that regulators say was designed to cheat on required emissions tests.

The company potentially faces more than $20 billion in fines from state and federal regulators, as well as hundreds of class-action lawsuits filed on behalf of angry vehicle owners. The Justice Department is also conducting a criminal investigation.

Chipotle store closes on norovirus fears

NEW YORK

A Chipotle store in Massachusetts was closed Wednesday after the local health board said an employee there tested positive for norovirus.

Richard Berube, director for the health board in Billerica, Mass., said his agency confirmed one case of norovirus and found two other suspected cases. Chipotle first closed the store Tuesday at the board’s suggestion, and it is scheduled to reopen today, he said.

None of the sick employees came in to work, but the store was closed as a precautionary measure, Berube said.

Chipotle already is fighting to win back customers after a rash of incidents in which customers were sickened around the country. Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. has said it’s instituting a number of food-safety procedures to ensure customer safety. That includes reminding workers they have three paid sick days a year and that they should stay home if they’re not feeling well.

Warm weather may harm syrup harvest

PORTLAND, Maine

Producers in the U.S. “Maple Belt” say a mild winter has allowed them to tap trees early, but the harvest could be down from last year due to the early onset of spring warmth.

Some producers in maple-rich states such as Maine and New York tapped trees as early as January, atypical in an industry when March is usually the money month. But they might have done so out of necessity: The arrival of consistently warm weather typically ends the maple season, because budding trees produce sap that makes for much less- palatable syrup.

Maine’s maple-syrup season got started abnormally early this year, with sap buckets visible on trees around Valentine’s Day in the southern part of the state. But producers promise the state’s official sweetener still will be available when the annual statewide Maine Maple Sunday celebration arrives Easter Sunday.

Associated Press